: The indefinite fast by YSR Congress party’s district president Gudivada Amarnath seeking a railway zone for Andhra Pradesh with Visakhapatnam as its headquarters entered the third day on Saturday. Political parties and trade unions extended support to Mr. Amarnath at the fast camp site — Tenneti Viswanadham Pranganam — near the Gandhi statue.
Support to the YSRC leader’s fast is increasing and the feeling among people is that at last an agitation has been taken up for the people’s cause. They are also finding fault with the Telugu Desam Party and the BJP and the latter’s local MP for failure to achieve the zone in spite of being in power for close to two years.
There is discomfiture in the two parties over the turn of events. Every day one or two senior YSRC leaders and leaders of other opposition parties visiting the fast camp are blasting the ruling parties and more severe criticism is expected when firebrand YSRC MLA R.K. Roja visits the camp on Sunday afternoon.
Police might forcibly shift Mr. Amarnath to a hospital on Saturday before Ms. Roja arrives. YSR Congress MLC Ummareddy Venkateswarlu called on Mr. Amarnath and demanded that the Central and State governments immediately respond positively to the demand of the people of the State who consider the railway zone as their right.
“People have been fighting for the railway zone for a very long time but no government has responded. Amar must be appreciated for going on an fast to achieve this great benefit to the people,” Mr. Venkateswarlu said.
Leaders of YSRC and other parties and trade unions from Visakhapatnam and neighbouring districts like Dharmana Krishna Das, Jakkampudi Vijayalakshmi, Karanam Dharma Sri, Petla Umasankar Ganesh, Yadla Ramana Murthy, former MLAs Malla Vijaya Prasad and Tynala Vijaya Kumar, KOyya Prasada Reddy, Kola Guruvulu, Vamsikrishna, INTUC leaders Mantri Rajasekhar, Parupudi Ravi and Tammi Naidu, CPI (M) leader Ch. Narasinga Rao, CPI leader A.J. Stalin, YSR Students Union leaders B. Kantha Rao, T. Suresh Kumar and others expressed solidarity with Mr. Amarnath and criticised the BJP and the Telugu Desam for failing to keep their election time promise.
